I don’t know where I was when Kennedy was shot. I don’t know what I was doing when the World Trade Center collapsed under the onslaught of two jetliners. But I remember every single detail, every minute, every second, of the day we got the bad news.

“It may not be Alzheimer’s,” said Dr. Castleman. “Alzheimer’s is becoming a catchword for a variety of senile dementias. Eventually we’ll find out exactly which dementia it is, but there’s no question that Gwendolyn is suffering from one of them.”

In addition to the medical experiment at the lab in Guatamala, which is science and fiction, I think that the reputation of the author is a factor that pigeon-holes the story as sci-fi. If it had been written by someone else, it might not get that label. . .

‘ Reminds me of Flowers for Algernon, which I read in Jr High English. Good Story. I don’t think it would have been as good with a happy ending.

I get the sense that the storyteller wanted to make a contribution to curing his wife’s disease, knowing that if the cure the lab was trying to develop did not work, at least he’d be able to share her experience with her and YOUNG together.

About five minutes in I was wondering what it had to do with sci-fi, and then fifteen minutes in I no longer cared.

The story was amazing, and written with such passion and authenticity that I was nearly convinced the author had experienced it himself. Even better was Alex Wilson’s reading–had I merely read the story instead of hearing it, I probably wouldn’t have teared up like I did (same with Craphound). Wilson’s reading genuinely sounded like an old man, and his passion was portrayed exceedingly well. The whole story had an undertone of utter hopelessness that reading it in text wouldn’t have ever equaled.

Despite my uncertainties about it at first, this is one of my favorites so far. Keep it up.

WOW! What a great story! And a great reading by Alex Wilson. You have a very nice voice. This story leaves you thinking afterwards. A very sad tale, but oh my what a strong love the man felt for his wife. Amazing!

Great Read, great story. But I could’ve used a warning it was such a heartwrencher. I was literally tearing up at points while driving to University.
Especially since I’m recently married, I look forward to a long and great relationship, but even thoughts like this frighten the hell out of me about the future.

Enough time has passed since the above comments (the ones that wonder where the science went) that I hope this will be seen as an explanation and not a defense, because I don’t think my approach to writing needs a defense.

I am not a futurologist; I am not a scientist; I am a fiction writer. My stories happen to be imaginative, and are often set on other worlds or in future eras, but I think the people I write about are much more important and interesting — to me, anyway — than the science and technology I don’t write about.

For the record, I’ve won 5 Hugo awards, and also for the record, 4 of them had less science in them than “Down Memory Lane.” I suppose every writer writes about what’s important to him; now you know what’s important to me.

I was especially affected by this story because I look after my wife who was disabled in a car accident. Fortunately she was not mentally impaired (though all of the medication that she is on leaves her a little loopy at times) but a lot of the feeling of helplessness, anger and frustration definitely paralleled my personal experiences.

I am not ashamed to say that I broke down and bawled like a baby after reading this story. I walked in to hug my wife – who was freaking out and thinking that something horrible had happened (I’m not much of a cryer as a rule)- and held her close and talked about the story for a while. We both fear that this is a possibility in the future, especially her because she wouldn’t be able to care for me if I was affected. Here’s hoping that a cure comes around before either of us need it.

Thankyou Mike for a wonderful story. It kicked my arse and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

while bartaby in exile *ALMOST* had me tearing up, this story turned on the waterworks for me. i’ve shed at most 1 tear for a few movies (strangely, that includes starwars III) but nothing like that. very good production!

Just caught this on the “rerun” on Escape Pod Classic,” and like so many others, it brought tears to my eyes, not just for the characters in the story, but also out of fear. I drive a truck for a living (I used to haul gasoline), so I’ve had a pretty vivid imagination about possible ways that fate will finally take my life (and I’ve lost friends and coworkers to just that vivid haz-mat fate, unfortunately).

However, like most sci-fi fans I know, I consider myself a thinker. No matter how many ways I have thought it possible to die (and don’t try psychoanalyzing me here), this is the way I fear the most. Of course, like the characters in the story, when the time comes, I’ll never realize it, but losing the memories and the thinking scares the hell out of me. “Science” or not, this was definately a story that made me think, and that is what I listen to Sci-Fi for.

Thank you Steve (and everyone else responsible for Escape Pod) for helping the miles go by a little more quickly. Keep up the great work!

Regarding Sigler’s run for “Sci Fi” channel placement, I’ve also thought that it would be a good fit for a Sci-Fi Channel original, but for reasons that are less flattering. The story devolved (pun intended) into a “monster chase,” which is the kind of movie the “Sci Fi” [quotation marks meant to be sarcastic] channel tends to make.

Yeah, have to agree with many of you: Where’s the sci-fi / fantasy element?
Usually I love Resnick’s work, but this fell a little flat for me: seemed mostly like long exposition, the ending was cool, but small payoff for a boring beginning. Kudos to the reader, the slow reading ticked me off at first, but then I realized it did help set the mood and the forgetfulness at the end just drove it home.

regardless of the decidedly “un sf”
nature of this story (and the fact that while listening i kept waiting for aliens and automatons to crop up), it really hit home. Sir Resnick, you are a fantastic author, my favorite featured here in fact, and your stories, your fiction..your masterpieces never cease to make me think.

Mike Resnick, Philip K Dick, JG Ballard – three highly respected authors who get categorised as SF because no one knows what else to call it.

The antidote (“anecdote”) was a red herring – presumably put there to mislead readers (listeners) into expected a different ending.

The notebook idea obviously doesn’t stand up to a moment’s thought – the protagonist wouldn’t have remembered to keep writing in it. Okay, so it involves suspension of disbelief, but why suspend your disbelief in a plot device that isn’t actually necessary to the plot? It could have worked just as well as an internal monologue.